Research Progress in Metabolomics for HCC Diagnosis and Treatment

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant tumors. It is characterized by high morbidity and mortality. Therefore, early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment are very important. Sensitive and convenient serological biomarkers play a key role in the diagnosis and treatment of HCC. However, traditional biomarkers such as alpha-fetoprotein fall far short of the clinical needs. Liver is an important organ of metabolism in the body. The occurrence and development of HCC are closely related to metabolism. Metabolomics is a newly developed subject. It has certain advantages in the screening diagnosis, mechanism exploration, precise treatment, prognosis judgment and efficacy evaluation of HCC. As an important part of systems biology, metabolomics technology can screen differentially expressed metabolites in the tissues, blood and urine of HCC patients. On the one hand, these metabolites can be used as biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis evaluation of HCC. On the other hand, these metabolites can also clarify the metabolic mechanism in the development and progression of HCC, which can be used to develop new drugs and new targets for the treatment of HCC. This article reviews the research progress of metabolomics in the diagnosis and treatment of HCC, in order to provide a theoretical basis for the screening of HCC biological diagnostic markers and potential therapeutic targets.